Scar-Faced
by SoporificCapsule
Summary: As it sounds, just something I threw together, Bella is scarred from a horrid attack. J/B, OOC, A/U, etc
1. Chapter 1

**SCAR-FACED**

CHAPTER 1

I snap the eye patch over the heavy scarring of my face and hide the disfigurement of my eye. I can't stand to see the bright red of my damaged eye gazing back at me. Don't get me wrong, I don't _need_ the eye patch, I can actually see quite well out of my damaged eye. Extremely well in fact, on a frightening, superhuman level, not that I'd ever tell anyone that. It's the burst blood vessels in my eye ball that disconcert me. My eye was once a warm brown. The white of my eye is left in tact, as is my pupil, but is now the iris of satan. I shudder just thinking about its steely gaze.

I inspect the scars that rake down the left side of my face, satisfied none of them are getting any infections, and leave Dad's sole bathroom.

So far, with the exception of the cold weather, the bathroom is the only downside to moving in with my dad. But there is a lot of new aspects of my new life I haven't explored yet. But really, what could be worse than mothering a thirty-something juvenile?

I trek down the stairs where I am greeted by absolute silence. I smile at my new-found serenity, yet another thing to add to my list of positives. I walk outside to the third item on my positive list, the new-old truck dad bought me for a homecoming present. I kick it over without it missing a beat and I can't help the small smile that flits to my lips. My dad really does know me, the character, but reliability of the truck suit me well.

I back out of the driveway, then take off slowly into the thick fog that has blanketed the small town. I squint out my normal eye, refusing to give into the fog by using my eye of satan. The school is only seven blocks away, so it doesn't take me long to arrive, but probably longer than it should have.

I one-strap my bag, and don't bother to lock the car, there is nothing worth stealing in there anyway.

I approach and enter the office, not bothering to check if everyone is staring or not, I already know the answer. I'm wearing an eye patch and half of my face has deep gashes, of course everyone is staring.

I approach the woman manning the desk, "hi," I greet.

She does a double-take before collecting herself, then smiles. "Hello dear, you must be the chiefs daughter, welcome to Forks, I hope you are settling in okay."

"Yes, quite well thank you."

"Wonderful," she hands me three sheets of paper, "now one is your timetable, the other is a map of the school, and the last is a sheet you will need all of your teachers to sign each lesson. After school, just bring it back here."

"Sounds easy enough, thank you," I smile at her, then leave.

I turn as I exit the office and find myself walking along a path that leads to the main hub of the school. I check my timetable and then look for the corresponding room number on the map. It is easy enough to find so I wander about aimlessly looking around, familiarising myself with the school until the bell rings.

The English teacher is already manning his desk upon my arrival, so I approach him and place the slip I need signing on his desk. "Good mooring sir, can I please get you to sign this?" I ask.

"Of course," he replies without sparing a glance. "Just take a seat anywhere."

I sit in the back left corner so it isn't as easy for the kids to stare at me, which they do blatantly anyway. Second period, Spanish was spent in much the same way. Well, all classes were really, except Maths where one of the local girls managed to scrounge up enough courage to ask me if I'd like to sit with her and her group at lunch. I accepted her invite, and if they are all a bunch of weirdos, I can retract my acceptance easily enough.

From that point the day sails on much more smoothly. I seem to become the shiny new toy instead of the scary-looking new girl.

People are so fickle.

The lunch time buzzer sounds at the end of History to signal the beginning of lunch and the girl, Jessica wastes no time in collecting me and directing me to her lunch table.

"So where are you from?" She asks as she seats me beside her, the rest of her group listening eagerly.

"Phoenix, I was there with my mother and her boyfriend," I reply easily enough. I'm actually surprised they don't know that already, I was under the impression Dad had been talking about me to the whole town for a month straight.

"That must have been nice, I hate not seeing the sun here," Jessica says.

"At least you won't get skin cancer," I offer as some sort of condolence.

She scrunches her face up,"yeah, that would suck."

Silence falls on the group as they no doubt try and tactfully ask me how I ended up with deep gashes on my face. They won't find one and I squash a smile at the thought. I look about the cafeteria and note the students stealing glances in my direction, except one group. I peruse them with my blurry, brown eye and note their attractive appearance, even through my bad eye. They are putting out a very strange vibe that seems to say, 'look at me, but don't look at me.'

I turn my attention back to the group, waiting for the next question.

"So Bella, are you settling in well?" A girl with glasses asks, genuinely I might add. I re-run through the names that was thrown at me before hand and the only one that fits is Angela.

"As well as I can, Dad has been great."

"It has to be tough, being away from one of your parents at all times, I couldn't even imagine it," Angela says, again she shows how genuine she is.

"It not actually as hard as you might think," I chuckle.

Some boys then come up and mucked around with the group before settling in, but avoid looking at me. I'm either making them uncomfortable, or they are afraid of making me uncomfortable. I ignore them and turn back to Angela. "So is there actually anything to do in this town besides hiking through the forest."

She smiles at my question, "afraid not. There is the beach at La Push that is really nice, but it's usually far too cold to swim anyway. There is sometimes whales there to watch too. But besides that, it's hiking I'm afraid."

"Wonderful, I just love to walk," I retort sarcastically.

Having basic introductions made, I get up and walk to where the food is located, willing to get some now that the line has diminished somewhat. I grab a few random things that I can pick at, not really ready to shovel large amounts of food in my mouth just yet, they can wait a few weeks to see that side of me.

I rejoin the group and pick at my food while they discuss levitating pyramids and whatnot until the bell rings. I have already memorised where my biology class is located, so I walk straight there, a few from the group I was sitting with joining me.

I hand my letter to the teacher and ask him to sign it, he does so with a smile, then directs me to the only available seat in the class, next to one of the strange people I seen at lunch.

I approach my seat, and upon noticing my approach, the boy that I will be sitting next to stills, then gets noticeably angry. I don't bother reacting, he isn't the only person to be upset with my close proximity.

I slouch on my stool, shuffling it as far away from him as possible, and focus on the lesson. I hear, rather than see him shuffle away from me too, but again, I don't react. He is entitled to his personal opinions and beliefs, his life and views have absolutely nothing to do with me.

Not soon enough, the bell rings, finally signalling the end of the school day. The boy makes haste with his exit and is out the door before anyone has even stood from their seats. I internally roll my eyes and pack up my belongings.

"Hi Bella, can I walk you to your car?" the boy I recognise as Mike asks me.

"I suppose you can do whatever you like, but I'm not going to my car just yet."

"Oh, maybe tomorrow then."

I shrug noncommittally and make my way to the office. Upon my arrival, I find none other than my lab partner, _begging_ the office lady to transfer him out of the biology class and into another subject… _any_ subject. I can't help but feel sorry for him. What kind of life does one have to have in order for a total stranger to upset them so much? He snaps his head to glare at me, then spits through gritted teeth, "I guess I'll just have to endure it." He storms past me, the scent of burnt sugar wafting up my nose as he passes.

I approach the office lady and hand her the slip with the teachers signatures all in a row.

"Why thank you dear, how did your first day go?"

"Yeah, it was okay," I reply.

"And everyone behaved themselves?"

"Yes, they did, thank you for asking."

I leave then and find my truck in the mostly barren parking lot. I kick the beast over and it starts first go. My gaze, for reasons unknown, finds the group of beautiful people who seem to be discussing something rather intently. Then, the boy from lab snaps his gaze to me, his eyes, black pools burning his hatred into my soul. I shake off his ire, put my car in first, and go home.

Whatever.

My Dad's police car sits out front, so that can only mean he has purposely finished work early to see how my day went. I pull up in the driveway, again leaving the car unlocked, I go inside my new home.

"Hey Dad, how was your day?" I yell through the house trying to pinpoint his location.

"In here Bells," he hollers from the kitchen, so I make my way through the house. "My day was okay, some deaths out of town by animal attacks, that's about it. How was your day? No one giving you hell?"

I absently stroke the smooth skin of my scar tissue, "a lot of stares, one boy had a big problem with me, but most of them are okay. Still too chicken-shit too ask about them though," I chuckle.

"I bet, if that kid gets nasty, be sure to tell me."

I shrug, "I don't really care Dad, he means nothing to me."

He gets up from his seat at the small table, and hugs me without provocation. "I am so glad you're back Bells, I was worried about you left in the hands of your mother."

"Being around her taught me a lot Dad, besides, it hasn't been too bad since she has been seeing Phil, he takes care of the bills and stuff now."

"It still angers me that it was you who had to make sure bills were paid and food was on the table though, it wasn't fair on you."

"Like I said, it taught me a lot about life, if I cared too much, I would've put my foot down and come back sooner."

He squeezes me one last time and lets go, "well I need to finish off some paperwork at the office, I'll be back later. I'll bring some dinner back with me."

"Okay Dad, have fun."

He shoots me a disparaging look, then leaves.


	2. Chapter 2

CHAPTER 2

The grass beneath my feet squishes from the heavy rainfall it had to endure this past week. The wet has kept me inside and I refuse to be its prisoner anymore. I don't like exploring in cars, especially when my focus is supposed to be on driving, so whenever I want to explore, I always go on foot, my hometown being no exception.

The main street is only two blocks away, so I manage to make it before my clothes soak through, but I don't hold much hope for the trek home. As long as I don't get sick, it matters little.

I see a park bench up ahead and it has a good view of the main happenings of Forks. It doesn't have a cover, but I've already come to terms with my inevitable soaking. I hasten my speed so I can sit as soon as possible. I don't really need to sit, but lengthy bouts of exercise tend to take my breath away, and I'd like to catch it before I decide to further explore, or retreat with my tail between my legs.

I slouch back on the cold steel, my back and feet feeling instant relief. I don't know how people walk professionally, there isn't enough money in the world that could make me walk twenty miles a day willingly.

I look about the small town, the level of activity quite amazing me. I didn't expect so many people out on a busy day let alone a rainy one. I spot Jessica, Angela and their bitchy friend Lauren, so I throw them a wave when they spot me, but they make no move to come over and chat. I scan more faces across the street, most of them now familiar, mostly from school.

Satisfied I've taken a full role call of everyone across the street, I check my side of the street where only a sole man strolls casually along the foot path, in his own world. I look closely with my bad eye and I'm surprised to see it isn't a man at all, but rather a fellow student. I've only seen his face a handful of times, but he is un-mistakingly one of the beautiful people that belong to the group my lab partner hangs around. I wonder if he holds as much hatred for me as his friend does.

I take this time to look closely at him, because the prospect of getting caught staring at someone at school is a far too horrifying scenario to even think about. His golden hair has been darkened by the heavy rain somewhat, but it hasn't lost the slight curl from the weight of the water, it is strong enough to remain. He looks down, so I can't assess much about his face, so I move on. His clothes are saturated and stick to his body , showing every curve of every muscle in his chest, stomach and legs. The rest are disguised by a leather bike jacket.

He walks past me silently, the puddles of water his tread is disturbing not even slapping or trickling, his gait very ghost-like.

Then, he suddenly freezes where he stands, one foot from me. He walks one step back so he is now standing directly in front of me. His body still faces forward, his neck cranes to the side and he looks at me curiously for a beat, before he starts acting weird. He turns his body, leans down, and placed his face next to mine, on my scarred side. He then jerks back, then sits next to me.

"What happened to your face?" he asks, expectation written on his face.

I'm taken aback somewhat, shocked someone just come out and asked me straight away.

"Why are you shocked?"

"Oh, um… people usually don't just come out and ask me, they usually avoid the subject altogether." He half shrugs, "so? how did you get them?" he prompts.

"I was attacked two years ago."

His black eyes inspect my scars as I speak, "I can see that, but by what?" I hear a faint twang in his speech, it is barely even there, but enough for me to detect it.

I eye him with speculation, most just immediately assume it was a bear because of the four large gashes the attacker scratched into my face, but again, he asked the question which no one else has. "Some psycho actually, I was at Houston with my mother and her boyfriend. He's a minor league baseballer, he had a game there and we come with him for support. Well, I was taken from my bed in the middle of the night and during the struggle, I got scratched. A group of college students actually saved my life that night, they stumbled upon us in an alley behind the motel we were staying at."

"Remember anything else about that night?" he fishes, leaning in.

"No, I don't. Why are you asking all of these questions? I don't even know you," I ask, I don't even know his name, and why on Earth would he even care?

Ignoring my question, he continues his line of questioning. "What are you hiding beneath the eye patch?"

That one takes me by surprise, most people just assume I'm hiding a hole in my face where my eyeball should be, but no one has even asked about it… ever. The subject usually grosses people out so they make a point of avoiding it like the plague.

"A hole," I lie, for reasons unknown, I have no reason to.

"You're lying," he state bluntly. Then, he just reaches up and flips the eye patch up for himself and I make no attempt to stop him. I idly note the coldness of his hand as it brushes against my cheek, leaving my flesh tingling its wake. I ultimately don't care, I have nothing to hide, I wear the eye patch for my own sake, not for anyone else.

A clearer world opens up to me now my good eye has been revealed. I firstly take in the town, noting all of the minor details I never saw before. The flock of birds settled in a nearby tree, a cat prowling, trying to feed itself. Mice scampering about down an alley between two shops across the street, worms breaching the sodden earth, then tunneling back down. I look away and return my gaze to the man sitting next to me, because boy isn't an appropriate term to use for him. Like my surroundings, my eye has revealed a whole new perspective on him. I can now see golden flecks through his black eyes, I can see more of the gold strands in his wet hair, but what stands out most about him, is the hundreds of crescent-shaped scars that litter the small amount of exposed flesh. I dart my eyes to his hands, the only other part of his flesh that is exposed and they, too like his neck and face are covered in the same scars. I obviously recognise them as bite-marks, but how on Earth does someone acquire so many.

"What happened to your face?" I reiterate his question.

He smirks wide and slouches back against the seat. "Your eye sight suddenly improved quite a fair bit." I shrug, "so tell me, how did that happen to your eye?"

"What happened to your face?" I mimic him and slouch back.

"I was attacked… a lot. Now, your eye," he prompts.

"I don't know, I barely remember the attack, but when I woke up in hospital, my eye was like this."

"And you are sure you don't know what happened."

"Yes, why do you care?"

"I was just curious," he replies with a shrug, then gets up from the bench seat, and continues on down the road.

I absently shake my head, wondering what the hell just happened. I get up, and retreat home... tail firmly in place.


	3. Chapter 3

CHAPTER 3

I place a few items on my tray at random, not really caring what I eat today. As long as I don't die of starvation, then I don't really care what goes in my mouth. A trait I picked up from living with mum, if it's edible, then eat it.

Seating myself at the table, I eat the small amount of food in silence while the group of people surrounding me followed suit.

"So Bella, what did you get up to over the weekend?" Jessica asks the second I swallow my last mouthful.

"Oh, just rearranged my room around, unpacked the rest of my stuff, cleaned and explored the town."

"Oh right, that must have been what you were doing when we seen you down the street. Was that Jasper you were talking too?" she kind of squeals a little when she says the name.

"Who?" I ask, the name unfamiliar.

She rolls her eyes at me, then nods toward the table where the angry boy from lab sits with the scarred man from the park bench and three others. "The blonde guy."

I nod, "yeah, is that his name?"

"Okay, clearly you haven't been paying attention. Now, the blonde guy is Jasper Hale, twin brother of the gorgeous blonde girl who is Rosalie Hale. They are the foster kids of Dr. and Mrs. Cullen. Now, the other three are their adoptive kids, Emmett, the big guy, Alice, the little fairy-like girl and Edward, the one that looks like he's in pain. And the best part…" she pauses, presumably for dramatic effect. "They're together, like… together-together."

"They're not actually related," Angela points out.

Jessica rolls her eyes, "it's still weird. Anyway, Emmett and Rosalie are a thing and so are Edward and Alice."

"Maybe they will adopt me too…" Angela sigh's in an un-Angela like fashion.

"So, what were you two talking about?" Jessica leans in, not wanting to miss a single word.

"He asked me how I got my scars," I half shrug, nonchalant.

Angela and Jessica both gasp in shock, "rude much?" Jessica says.

I again half-shrug, "I don't care, I'm not oblivious to their presence."

"But still, isn't it painful to talk about?" Angela asks, concern lacing her tone.

"No, not at all. If you were to ask too, I'd tell you, it really isn't that big of a deal."

"Oh," Jessica replies, "so... how did you get them?"

"I was in Houston for a weekend and some psycho broke into my motel room and abducted me, then attacked me in a back alley."

Angela and Jessica both gasp while the rest of the group stare open-mouthed. "I thought you were going to say an animal attacked you or something," Jessica retorts.

"Well, she was as wild as an animal."

"That is just horrible to know that a human being is capable of such horrific things," Angela mumbles with a drawn in brow.

The bell rings, so I walk to biology with Mike at my side, trying to start a conversation with me, in vain might I add. I break away from him and take a seat next to my lab partner, who once again makes a big point of moving as far away from me as possible.

"Good morning class, today we will be doing lab work and because our school funding goes toward much more important equipment such as tackle bags for the football team, we will be sharing microscopes today. Now please, turn to page three-forty-six in your text books, your instructions are written there, and I want you to write your findings in your workbooks. Please." He turns away from the class and busies himself with some paperwork on his desk.

I sigh and flip open the text book, read through the instructions, then divert my gaze to my lab partner. His gaze is affixed out the window, somewhere that is not here. I half-shrug to myself and pull the microscope and slides over to myself, hogging the equipment all to myself. I idly note that I probably wouldn't even need the microscope if I took my eye patch off, but I've got to do something with my time, so I leave it where it is.

In my peripheral, I see my lab partner has suddenly become interested in the left side of my face, which he has a good vantage point of. I ignore him, and continue on slowly with my work.

It is a boring and uncomfortable hour, but the bell finally rings, as it always does, and again, I am free to go home. I gather my gear and walk out to the car park, making a beeline for my truck. Upon my approach, I sigh heavily. Someone has parked as close as they possibly could, making it near on impossible to open the door. I round the car to the passenger side where I discover the passenger door is locked, and this side doesn't have a keyhole. Great, just great. I backtrack and wait at the back of the truck for the owner of the car to move it.

I search the faces of the students, hoping to match a face with the car. Mike, no, Jessica… no, Angela, no, lab partner, no. A loud, ear-piercing screech draws my attention to a black van skidding out of control, and it's heading straight for me. I beg my legs to move, and they do, but not quick enough. I'm hit from the side, but the wrong side. My body hits the asphalt, but I keep my neck craned to prevent my head from hitting. My vision finally adjusts to the new surrounds, and it isn't who I expected to be hovering over me, pushing the black van away with his bare hands… my lab partner.

Screams fill the lot and in a blink of an eye, my lab partner is gone from the scene, disappeared. A flock of students hover about, checking for injury, asking questions.

"I'm fine," I answer generally. I push myself up off the ground and stand by my own steam, much to the protest of others. I stand on my tippy-toes, and find who I am looking for instantly; Edward. He stands with his siblings across the lot and he has even more hatred plastered on his face than ever before. I inspect his family's faces to see if they mirror his feelings, and the girls certainly do, but his brothers don't, they just stare at me blankly.

A paramedic pulls up close by, followed by my dad. Two paramedics and my dad push through the crowd, the group make a circle around me, looking on.

"Are you okay?" Dad whispers in my ear as he hugs me.

"Can we get away from here, take me to the hospital if you must, I just don't want to be gawked at," I whisper back.

He doesn't reply, he just takes me to the paramedic van and walks me inside, "I'll follow in my cruiser."

"Okay."

One paramedic joins me in the back while one takes the drivers seat and wastes no time in leaving the scene.

"What about the driver?" I ask the paramedic, trying to look back.

"The other van has him, your Dad didn't want you both in the same vehicle," she replies.


	4. Chapter 4

CHAPTER 4

"Just follow the light," the ridiculously good-looking doctor tells me, and I do with both eyes, however my devils eye can't actually see it, it just follows beneath my eye patch. "Well, you seem fine apart from the few scratches . I'd say you were very lucky."

"Actually, Edward saved me, luck had nothing to do with it," I reply, gauging his reaction.

"Edward?" my Dad clarifies, "your boy?"

"Yes, now just take it easy, take some paracetamol if necessary and come back if something changes."

"Oh, Bells, while we're here, we could get a second opinion on your eye if you like," my brilliant father suggests.

I roll my eyes at him, making sure he sees the one roll, "Dad, I've seen a dozen doctors about it, one more isn't going to change the result."

"What could it hurt? Dr. Cullen is a world-class doctor."

"What's this about her eye," the doctor asks my dad, not me.

"When she was attacked, her eye sustained some injuries, she was blind for three days, but her vision finally returned, but in the process of healing, somehow her blood vessels in her eyeball burst and all of the other doctors said the damage was unheard of and irreversible."

"Why, that sounds… unusual." He diverts his attention to me, "do you mind if I take a look?"

I half-shrug, "whatever," I pull up the eye patch and rest it on my forehead.

A clearer world opens up to me and I can't help but take a closer look at the doctor. I note how he has insanely small pores on his skin, making it look like he is made from flawless marble. I do however, find a familiar flaw on his neck, a crescent-shaped scar, completely unseen to my normal, brown eye and only evident to my eye of satan.

"It is quite unusual," he says evenly. "I have never seen anything like this before, can you see out of it?"

I reply to him just as I did the rest of the doctors that ask about it. "I can see normally out of it, just like before the attack."

"Really?" he replies dryly, only low enough for us two to hear.

"Really," I reiterate.

"So if you see fine, why do you wear the eye patch?" he asks.

"Because I hate seeing it, it's awful and it scares me."

"Well," he addresses Dad now. "There really isn't anything that can be done about it, it works fine, that is the important thing."

"That is what I've been trying to tell her," Dad replies, shooting me a look.

I get up off the bed and stretch out, "well, I'm off, you boys have fun." And I leave them there to sort out whatever it is that needs doing.

All I need to do now is walk back to the school to pick up my truck, but the walk sounds really good at the moment, it will help burn off the excess adrenaline that I got from the incident. My peripheral vision catalogues a shadow, so I spare a glance and find Jasper falling in step beside me.

"Want a lift?" he stares on ahead looking bored.

"No thanks, I'm going to walk, burn off all of this adrenaline."

"Can I join you?"

I shrug, "you can do whatever you like."

"But would you mind," he says slower.

I roll my eyes at him, "no."

We breach the threshold, the icy wind whipping at my eyes. I regret my decision instantly.

"That ride is still up for offer," he offers as though he could read my mind.

"No, no. Really, it may be really cold, but I won't be able to sleep tonight if I don't do something to get rid of the energy."

"Okay then, so why do you wear that eye patch? You are handicapping yourself by covering it."

"I just hate looking at it, it's evil… it's not my eye… it's hers." I internally scald myself, I had never actually said that out loud before.

He shoots me a side-long glance, "what do you mean by that?"

"Nothing," I take inventory of my surounds with my exposed red eye, soaking up as much until I flip my eye-patch back on when I get to my car.

"You're lying again. You said 'it's not mine… it's hers.' Does that mean the woman who attacked you had red eyes?"

Instead of answering, I change the subject all together. "Why does your brother hate me?"

"He doesn't, now answer the question."

"He does, and why would he stop the van with his bare hands to save me? Now answer mine."

He sighs and shakes his head at me, "he hates himself, not you, and he has a Superman complex, now answer the question."

"Yes," I reply.

"What else do you remember about her?" he pushes further.

"Why are you asking so many questions?" I snap back.

"Because, it's important."

"No. It. Isn't." I say slowly between my teeth.

"What else?" he pushes.

"I'm not answering any more questions until I know something about you… how did you get all of those scars?"

"You already know the answer to that," he retorts.

"Okay then, why does your dad have one too?" I throw back.

"For the same reason," he returns.

"Why can't my normal eye see the scars?"

"Because it's normal."

I smile finally figuring something out. "So if my normal eye can't see your scars, then why can you?"


	5. Chapter 5

CHAPTER 5

"You disappoint me Bella, I thought you had figured that out a week ago." I huff in response, but otherwise remain silent. "Then have you told anyone about this?" I don't even respond negatively before he knows my answer. "Good, make sure you don't, not even to my family. Oh, and when you are around Edward… try not to think about it."

"Why?"

"Why what?" he asks.

"Why… any of it. Why can't I tell people or _think_ about it… why do you care?"

He stops, halting me with him by grabbing my arm. "Bella," his black eyes penetrate into mine. "You already knew it was dangerous to talk about it, trust your instincts, but just mind your thoughts around Edward, he isn't as… _defiant_ as I when it comes to rules."

I look evenly at him, gauging his seriousness. My mind flashes to those evil red eyes of my attacker, her salivating mouth, the viscous swipe at my face, her inhuman speed and strength. "You're saying he can read my mind."

"I'm saying to not think about any of that stuff when you're near Edward."

"Alright," I agree. "Now, tell me about your eyes." I say as I start walking again.

"What about them?"

"How are your eyes like mine, but not red?"

He shoots me a side-long glance, "I'm not answering that."

"You sure do ask a lot of questions, but are quick to dismiss mine."

"Yeah, so tell me about this woman. Red eyes, what else about her?"

"I don't understand why you want to know."

He sighs heavily, "I actually already know about her, what I want to know is what you know."

I root myself to the ground, grabbing his arm and stopping him, the hard muscles under my hand not going unnoticed. "You know who done this to me? How? Why didn't you say anything? We have to tell someone."

"Bella, there is no one to tell. I just told you not to go talking about this to anyone. And you also know I can't tell you how I know. But what I do need to know, for your sake, not mine, is what you know."

I appraise him closely, his seriousness on the matter very evident. "Fine," I concede. "She was South American, she had red eyes, she seemed to salivate a lot, she got some spit in my eye. She was super fast and super strong and… she tried to bite me." Just as I say the final two words, my eyes skim over his scars, giving me a whole new perspective. His eyebrows raise, but all of the jigsaw pieces almost complete a picture, I am just a few pieces short. "Holy shit."

"How about I get you home and you can sit on your new information for a while." I don't respond, I just walk back to the truck by his side and don't protest when he gets in the driver seat. "I have a friend who used to own a truck like this, that seems a life time ago now."

"He must have good taste," I quip.

"Well, he is friends with me, so I'd say so," he quips back.

I groan at his lame response, but smile nonetheless. "So how will you get home, do you want me to drop you off or something?"

"No, I'll be fine. So how are you settling in here?"

"Yeah, pretty good. Except the weather, I'll never get used to that, I'm used to the heat… I crave it."

"Yeah, I miss the sun too. To go from living in it, to admiring it from afar… I crave it too."

"Yeah, I thought I heard a twang in there somewhere," I note.

"Texan born and bred ma'am," he nods an invisible cowboy hat in my direction.

I can't help the smile that breaks free, it pulls at my scarring uncomfortably, but I don't suppress it. "Would you like to come in for a drink or something to eat?" I ask, noticing he's pulling into my driveway.

"No, I better not."

"Suit yourself," I grab my bag and exit the cab of the truck, Jasper following suit.

"On second thought," he says while looking about the yard. "I might join you for a while."

I look around the yard and into the tree line of the forest behind the house, seeing if something there changed his mind, but I don't see anything. I lead the way into the house, flicking the entry light on as I shut the door behind us.

"How about a tour?" he asks before I even offer him a drink.

"Alright, living room," I point to the right. "Kitchen slash dining through there," I point down the hall ahead of us. "Bathroom there and laundry out past the kitchen."

"Awesome," he says. "Now can I see your bedroom?" He looks at me expectantly.

"You've done and said some weird stuff, but that would have to be the creepiest," I answer.

He offers me a disparaging look, "I'm not going to do anything."

I walk up the stairs, his footfalls behind me non-existent, but I can feel his presence, so I know he's following. I enter my room through the open door and flick the light on as I go.

"Cosy," he comments and looks around touching everything in my room that can be touched. He stills at the window and check the seals and lock, opening and shutting it silently. "I presume you haven't opened the window since you've been back."

"You presume right, it's too cold for that."

"Good, keep it shut." He doesn't elaborate further, he just walks up to my bed and flops down on it. "So, what do yo do in your spare time?"

I contemplate taking a seat on my desk chair, but it's my bed damn it, and I'm gonna sit on it. I close the distance and flop down on the side I usually sleep on, right beside him. "Well, in Phoenix, my spare time was spend cooking for and cleaning up after a four-hundred-and-eight month old and figuring out how to pay bills, but here… Dad is on the ball. So my free time I now spend trying to figure things out… find a hobby, think about the future."

"You have friends, I haven't seen you spend time with them."

"I don't know if I'd use the term 'friend,' maybe in the future, but not yet… and maybe just Angela."

"Well, it's getting late, I'm going to go and let you do what you need to do, but I'll see you tomorrow at school."

He gets up and I follow suit. Instead of leaving, he walks around the bed, and encircles me in a tight hug. I stand there awkwardly for a beat, but the urge to wrap my arms around him too strong... so I wrap my arms around him.

He pulls away and I offer him a 'WTF?' look, but he just shrugs it off. "I'll walk you out," I follow him down the stairs and out into the cold night air. The ice whips at my flesh and stings my eyes, and I can't but help the poor guy out. "I'll let you drive my truck home if you promise to pick me up for school tomorrow morning." I hold out the keys that he deposited on the hall stand near the entry, and he takes them with a smirk. "Why thank you Bella, I'll be here at twenty-past."

I contemplate advising him to drive slowly and carefully, but he drove responsibly here, so I trust him to take care of her.


	6. Chapter 6

CHAPTER 6

A knock on the front door signals the arrival of my lift. I rush down the stairs and pull open the door where Jasper awaits.

He eyes my bag, "you aren't going to invite me in?"

"I wasn't going to," I admit, "but you can come in for a while if you like."

I move to the side and wave him in with a gesture of my arm. He walks past me and instead of walking to the living room or kitchen, he walks upstairs to my room, so I follow him up.

"Do you have a weird fetish with my room that I should know about?" I ask.

He barks out a laugh, but doesn't respond. He makes a beeline for the window again, so I dump my bag on the floor and flop on my bed while I wait for him to do whatever it is he's doing. "You're pretty weird, you know," I point out idly.

"What I presume you mean, is that I'm not like everyone else, so thank you, I try not to be." He turns away from the window and flops on the bed beside me, face beaming.

"No," I disagree. "I'm pretty sure I meant you're weird," I offer a toothy grin back.

"You shouldn't wear that you know," he nods toward my face, so I presume he means my eye patch.

My smile stays in place "and why is that, all powerful Oz?"

"Obviously, because you don't need it, you can see fine."

I roll my eyes at him, "I obviously don't wear it because I can't see, I wear it so I don't need to see the eye of my attacker staring back at me."

"You seem to be very disturbed by that still, have you considered talking to someone about it? It might help you move on."

I appraise whether or not he is serious, but his lack of smile shows he is. "I have accepted that I am scarred for life, I've accepted that I was almost killed, but that doesn't mean I want to constantly remember, every time I look in the mirror or catch my reflection.

"Well, I prefer it off when I'm around, then I know you are seeing what I am seeing."

"And why would you care about that?"

He smiles at me again, "it reminds me we aren't so different."

I melt a little on the inside and a swarm of butterflies take up residence in my stomach, and for some reason, his smile brightens. "Fine," I flick up the patch, the brighter world now available to me. "But don't get used to it."

He shakes his head slightly, "are you ready to go?"

"Yep," I spring up off the bed and follow him out to my truck. Without prompting, he gets in the passenger seat, not even presuming he was driving. I smile at his courtesy, and jump into the truck. I give the dash a pat, silently apologising for lending her out, then kick her over.

"So what is it about this truck you hold so much affection for? Is it because its timelessness, character and strength appeal to you, or the sentimentality it holds because of who gave it to you?" Jasper asks me while rifling through the paperwork in the glovebox.

"Both, I think. Dad means a lot to me, and if I wasn't fearful my mother wouldn't accidentally get herself killed because of her stupidity, I would have lived here since birth."

"So why move back now?"

"Mum has a new babysitter," I reply.

"You hold resentment for her, but your love and affection overpower its bitterness."

I give him a sidelong look, but his attention is focused on a sheet of paper he pulled from the pile. "That was a statement, not a question," I point out, genuinely curious for his reasoning.

"Yes, it was."

I huff, "care to explain."

"No, you already know too much and I'm sure you will figure it out yourself anyway," he replies cryptically. "I can't believe your middle name is Maree, how unfortunate for you."

"That's my grandmothers name," I say dryly.

"How unfortunate for her too, at least it's not Maria."

My lips quirk, "and what is so wrong with Maria?"

"I'll tell you soon enough, but we'll wait for everything to blow up first."

I shoot him a worried look, "what is that supposed to mean?" A sickening feeling forms in my gut, I'm not going to like this.

"C'mon Bella, don't play dumb. First, you are attacked by something you can't explain. Your physical attributes have changed, and while most people like me won't pick up on it, I did, which means others will _and_ have. Carlisle saw your eye, Edward suspects, not to mention stopping the van while you watched on. Surely you have realised there will be consequences to having the knowledge you have gained… there is a reason no one else knows what you do."

He says it casually, yet, I am anything but. There is something that has been bugging me though, "why was it that Edward saved me? If any one of your family, shouldn't it have been you?"

He packs up his papers and offers me his full attention, toothy grin firmly in place. "Are you upset because I didn't save you?"

I roll my feelings around before being totally stupid, and totally honest. "I am actually, why was it your brother and not you?"

"Well, I'm sorry I hurt your feelings. But, the van wasn't going to kill you, you would have broken your femur and had a gash down your side that would have bled quite a bit. Not quite saving your life, but Edward didn't do it for your sake, he did it for his and I personally wasn't willing to expose myself in front of the whole teenage population of Forks. I do like your femur, just not that much."

"So, if exposing yourself is so horrid, why did Edward expose himself? Or at least run the risk of exposure."

"Because if he didn't, he would have exposed himself in a much worser way."

I pull into a car space at the end of the lot so I wont have someone blocking my door again. "Exactly how much trouble am I in?"

"You shouldn't worry too much at the moment, just don't go talking about it and don't think about it when your near Edward. I'm doing what I can for as long as I can, just don't stress about it, it will do your head in." He flashes me a smile, one that sends my insides weak, "May I accompany you at lunch today?"

"Yes," I reply too soon, making myself sound rather desperate.


	7. Chapter 7

CHAPTER 7

Butterflies swim in an ocean of queasiness in the small confined of my stomach. I haven't been able to stop replaying Jasper and my conversation from this morning. Except now, I'm on my way to lunch and sit with him, which isn't a problem at all. The problem is his brother. Jasper has repeatedly eluded to the possibility that Edward can read my mind, which means I need to think about something else. But what? I could try to solely focus on Jasper and relay the current conversion over as it happens, or I can think of something uncomfortable to scare him away from my brain forever. Perhaps Jasper is the best person to ask for that. A shadow falls into step beside me and a quick sidelong glance shows it is my new lunch-buddy.

"What has your thoughts in turmoil?" he asks.

"I'm just contemplating what to focus on, the conversation at hand, or something really uncomfortable."

"Hmm… something uncomfortable is always a good choice. Replay any porno's you have seen and if you haven't, then I suggest cataloguing the male population of the school through some sort of scoring system," he nods on thoughtfully.

A deep red heat burns my face at his casual mention of watching porno's, or even considering I would think deeply on my fellow students.

"Better yet, catalogue the girls… intimately, that will keep him out of your head for sure."

Again, the heat intensifies. I clear my throat, "and what do you think about?" I instantly regret my question, but my curiosity outweighs it by a mass.

His wide grin morphs his mouth once again, "you blushed at the word 'porno,' I don't think you are ready for my answer."

We walk through the swinging doors of the cafeteria and silently make our way to the line where he picks up a tray, "we'll share."

We both pick up a few items at random then make our way to the window side of the cafeteria where we sit at a table for twelve, but everyone keeps a thirty-foot radius. "Why don't people come near you?"

"For the same reason they don't keep mountain lions for pets."

"They think your dangerous," I state, though it was more like a question.

"I am dangerous Bella, you're just too blind to see it at the moment," he says cryptically while tapping my eye patch.

"Anyway," I say, changing the subject, "what do you do in your spare time?"

"I make chainsaw furniture, then sell it, then donate the proceeds to the kids ward here in town."

I must admit, I'm taken aback a little, I really hadn't expected him to say something like that. "I will pay you to make a bedroom set for me, I'll leave design up to your discretion, but I have two and a half, is that enough to cover it?"

"I'm not going to take your money Bella," he mimics me and rolls his eyes.

"You won't be, the needy children of Forks will be, besides, it's not my money, it's mums," I rationalise.

"Okay, okay. Anything specific?"

"No, just like, sign it or whatever people do when they create stuff." I pick at some banana bread that Jasper picked up for himself, "do you mind if I eat this."

He smirks, "not in the slightest, in fact, I insist upon it."

"Okay… thanks. You can have my cake in exchange," I offer.

"Not necessary Bella, I'm not hungry."

I look at him in thought, his statement triggering my memory. "I've never seen you eat, or even drink for that matter." I put more in my mouth and chew away while he explains his anorexia problems.

"And this is the first time I've ever seen you eat, or drink," he retorts.

"Okay, fair enough. So how long have you lived with the Cullen's?" I ask generally.

"Since nineteen-fifty-six," my eyes turn to saucers, but then he starts laughing, almost hysterically. "We've lived here in Forks for two-and-a-half years now."

My eyes shrink to normal size again, not that my left eye can be seen, "over two years and you still haven't made friends."

"That hurts Bella, I consider you a friend."

I roll my eyes at him, "I mean before I got here, and I used the plural, as in more than one."

"I have eight actually, not to mention the many more that don't live here."

I bark out a laugh, "is your mommy one of those?"

He smiles wide, "her name is Esme, and yes, she is actually."

I shake my head at him, "and you say your dangerous, well sir, I scoff at you," then I make a big scoffing noise, just to prove my point.

"I'm only dangerous to those I need to be with, Bella. Now tell me, why are you nervous and anxious?"

I don't ask him how he knows that, I just answer the question, "I have biology next."

He nods, understanding. "Well, you know what they say, it's all in the details. You should really linger on the minor details."

That is actually the best advice he has given me, "why thank you, that is actually helpful."

He raises an eyebrow at me, "are you saying my other advice wasn't?"

I can't help the smile that flits to my mouth, "not at all, it just wasn't the right advice for me."

The bell rings and it's time for me to endure the worst hour of my day, "well this has been fun, I'll see you tomorrow."

"If I get bored, can I come around tonight? I could probably take some measurements while I'm there."

"Yeah, that will be great, my dad finishes early today, so he will be there," I sort of warn.

"Great, I'd love to meet him."

I give him a dubious look, "you have never met my dad and you've lived here for years now?"

"No, I haven't met most of the town, I usually keep to myself."

"Huh, well I'll see you later then, do you want a lift?" I ask.

"No thanks, I'll bring my car today so I don't have to borrow yours again."

"Okay, bye."


	8. Chapter 8

CHAPTER 8

The knock on the door resonates loudly through the house, "I got it," my dad hollers up the stairs. I take off my eye patch and throw it over to my desk, missing completely.

I finish up my maths homework, trusting Dad to send him up. It doesn't take long for my guest to enter my room, without knocking I might add. Instead of greeting me and joining me on the bed however, he looks under my bed, then looks in the closet, then checks the window again.

"What's up?" I asked, quite concerned by his behaviour.

His head snaps to me, seeming to just notice I was in the room, and instead of seeing the serious, but funny and charming Jasper I'm used to, I see the black-eyed dangerous man he said he was. My left eye takes in his mass of scars, the powerful stance, the small fissures his fisted hands are making on his own skin. I am powerless to contain the hot flush that pulses through me.

"We have problems," he starts pacing the small length of my room, and I leave him undisturbed to do so while I watch him closely. "You're making it hard for me to think," he says, not breaking from his rhythm.

"I'm not doing anything," I protest.

"On the contrary darlin', you're doing quite a bit."

I just about lose my cool when he drops his thick accent on me and pairs it with a 'darlin'. "I, I'm not," I stammer.

"You just did it again," he stops his pacing and stares me down for what feels like both seconds and hours. I blink, and he appears in front of me on the bed. His blackened eyes bore into mine which brings on a whole new wave of heat. A rumble resonates from his chest as he starts closing the distance between us. I don't shuffle back, instead I lean back as he hovers above me. "You don't have the best timing, you know that, don't you?" Instead of allowing me to answer, he presses his lips to mine and I can do little to contain the burst of heat and passion that pulses through me. I return his kiss with vigour. His hard body presses down on mine, his icy flesh cooling my heated body with what felt like a sizzle.

All too soon, he pulls away, "we will have to continue this later." He gets up off the bed and resumes his pacing while I lie on the bed, replaying what had just happened over in my head.

I shake the thoughts from my head and focus on what might be troubling him. "What is wrong, it's too late for concealment, you said so yourself."

He stops and stares for a beat, then joins me on the bed. "First problem, the less serious. Edward refuses to leave you alone, he's obsessing and it's not good for anyone involved."

I'm a little taken back by this news, "how so?" I ask.

"You have something he wants, but instead of taking it, he's obsessing over it."

I search his face for a beat, "and what will happen if he takes… _it_?"

His eyes bore into mine, "then you will die, and I will kill him slowly and painfully."

My heart skips a beat, "what exactly is 'it?'"

"Your blood Bella."

A myriad of thoughts slam into my brain, but I push them away as best I can, he said this was the minor issue, so what could be worse than his brother trying to kill me? "And the other problem?" I prompt.

"Edward and Carlisle are both alike, both bound by their duty."

"Their duty to what exactly?"

"Our race. It's all of our duty to preserve our identities and keep our secret. You are a huge problem to our secret and even though I know you won't say anything, they don't know you like I do."

A deep seed of dread is planted in the cockles of my heart, "what did they do?" I ask, though I'm not sure I want to know the answer.

"There is a ruling family that stop at nothing to ensure the secret is kept… they reported us. They are coming."

I take a deep breath, "so what are our options?"

"One, let Edward have what he wants. Two, let me have what Edward wants. Three, be on the run until they catch us. Four, I change you and you leave your life behind."

"Well, If it comes down to one and two, then I prefer two. I can't do three, I don't do well in stressful situations, so that leaves four. If I choose four, can I come back and see my dad?"

He smiles tenderly, "of course. But you won't be able to tell him, Edward isn't the only mind reader our kind has."

I swallow the lump in my throat, "when do we have to go?"

"I'm sorry Bella, but it's now. You can go down and say goodnight, but that's it. I'll stay here and pack for you."

"Okay, but won't he connect my disappearance with you? He saw you."

"Actually, I jumped through the window, I just rang the bell to preoccupy him."

I walk down the stairs, resolved. It's clear that whatever decision I choose but this one, my dad will get caught up in the fray. Besides, could I really pick staying with dad over Jasper? I round the corner into the living room where dad lounges watching a game, can of beer in hand. "I'm going to sleep now, Dad," I approach him and cuddle him tightly. "I love you."

He squeezes back, "I love you too Bells. Sweet dreams."

I turn my back on him, and retreat back up the stairs. Jasper stands by the window with a backpack by his feet. "Ready?"

I shake my head, "no."

"I'm sorry, but it could be worse."

Right, I could be dead. I approach him, and cuddle him, needing the affection. His arms wrap around me and hold me firmly. "Okay," I pull away from him, "I'm ready."

He opens the window, scoops me and my bag up, then jumps out the window, clearing my whole yard. I gasp in amazement, my good eye tracking our movements perfectly. He runs us through the forest at light speed, my human eye blurring in confusion while my inhuman eye watches on in amazement. He stops at a truck that is parked on the side of the road… my truck. I beam at its presence, and grateful to Jasper for his forethought. I can't even put into words how much I appreciate his kindness.

"You're welcome darlin'," he whispers into the crook of my neck from behind me. "Now, let's go before the Cullen's find out that we took off. We need a couple days, then we're home free."

"Why a couple of days?" I ask.

"It takes three days to change," he clarifies.

"Oh, right. That's how long it took for my eye to change," a new light bulb turns on in my brain. "Oh God, this is going to hurt, isn't it?"

"I'm sorry." We sit in silence until we're on the highway, "I suppose I have some 'splainin' to do, but where to start," he says, looking ahead with stern eyes.

"Well… you could start by telling me exactly what you are."

"You already know," he replies.

"I know, but you saying it will make it real."


	9. Chapter 9

CHAPTER 9

I wake to the sound of rocks popping and crunching beneath my tyres, so I stretch my body out and open my eyes to the sun beaming down brightly on everything. "Where—" I cut myself, mostly because I'm speechless. The sun is reflecting off his skin and all of his scars like a diamond, or a disco ball. "What the?"

"Yeah, one downside to being one of us, you have to live under a cloud or the cover of night."

"Oh, that's why you lived in Forks." I look around and see he is approaching a modest-looking house at the end of the dirt road we're on. "What is this place?"

"This is my house, no one knows about it, so we should be safe."

He pulls up and I don't wait, I get out of my truck and stretch out my numb and aching body. "I'll give you the tour," he speeds around the car and all but throws me on his back. "Kitchen, dining, bathroom, laundry, family, den, office, basement, torture chamber," he zooms throughout he bottom half of his house at vampire speed, talking almost inaudibly. He zooms up the stairs where it opens to one, lone room, "and this is my room." He throws me off his back so I land perfectly on the bed and he wastes no time joining me.

"And this is where you will be changing, and with any luck, we'll get that stink off you."

"Wait," I say, somewhat stunned, "I _stink_?!"

"No darlin', your eye stinks."

My brow furrows, "my eye?"

"The vampire that attacked you was Maria, I can smell her."

My mind conjures the image of that day I was sitting on the park bench where Jasper leaned over, and placed his face beside mine. "That day on the bench, were you sniffing my eye?"

"Yes, I smelled her and I couldn't account for her scent," he explains.

"So, who is she to you?"

He slumps back against his mountain of pillows, "she's the one who turned me… she's also the one responsible for all of these," he twists his arms, rays of sunlight reflecting off his crescent shaped scars.

"So she has scarred both of us, that's quite a coincidence. But if my eye smells like her because her spit changed my eye, doesn't that mean you smell like her because it is her that changed you."

"We all have our own scent Bella, but her venom hasn't transformed you, so the venom hasn't become a part of you yet. Her venom is isolated for some reason, which is why I can still smell it."

"Well, in a way I'm glad. You never would have sat down that day if you didn't smell it."

He chuckles, "let's not talk about her anymore," he suggests.

"Okay then, let's talk about that ability of yours," I suggest.

"Okay then," he smirks, "what do you want to know?"

I think back on some of our conversations, and surmise what I have learned of it. "You know what I'm feeling, all of the time." He nods, "what else can you do?"

Smirk firmly in place, a wave of giddiness washes over me and I can't help the small giggle that escapes my lips. "Stop!" I laugh, "stop." The strange feeling recedes, my own emotions back. "That was really weird, can you make me feel anything?"

"Any emotion at all," he confirms.

"Wow, I wonder if I'll get an ability."

"You already have one Bella."

"I do?" I ask quite disbelieving.

He nods in confirmation, "yes. Your ability is being awesome."

I smack his chest playfully, the impact stinging my hand a bit, "don't tease me."

"Okay," he grabs my hand and kisses my palm. "Did you hurt yourself?"

"A little," I admit abashed."Will your family be upset you left?"

"Of course not, if anything they'd be happy. Just because they are bound by duty to report all incidences, doesn't mean they like doing it."

"And will there be any consequences for changing me?"

"No, once your changed, the issue is resolved. As long as we don't get tracked down now or while you're changing."

"So the sooner I change, the better?" I clarify.

"Yes," he confirms.

I look into his blackened eyes once again, my resolve strengthening. "Let's get it over with then."

His eyes bore into mine, maybe looking for regrets, or clarity or the future… I don't know, but he doesn't look away for an immeasurable amount of time. "Is there anything you wanted to do while you're still human?" He asks finally.

Heat rushes to my face from my thoughts, but that isn't something that needs to be a human experience. Apart from that, I've done all I needed to while human. "No, whatever I have left to do can wait."

"Then in that case," he disappears from my side and reappears above me, hovering. He silently leans in, and kisses me. Heat flushes through my body once again, and like our last kiss, warmth and passion flood all conscious thought. I kiss back, and pull at his shirt. He complies with my feeble tugging at his shirt and closes the distance between our bodies. My hands find the cooled flesh of his back, his scars non-existent under my fingertips, just the smooth marble my human eyes see his flesh as having.

I break from his mouth, my resolve once again steeled. "Jasper, there is one thing I wanted to do before you change me."

"Okay, what is it."

I inhale deeply, and hold it, "I think I love you."

He is silent for a beat, but it feels like years. "I know," he replies. "I feel your love, right along with your doubt and confusion." He strokes my scarred cheek softly, "I love you too, Bella."

"Do it," I brace myself, my hands fisting his shirt.

"It's going to hurt, and I'm sorry." He nuzzles my neck, kisses, then bites down.

 **A/N: AGAIN, I'M ALL ABOUT THE JOURNEY, NOT THE DESTINATION. SO I WROTE THIS ONE IN RECORD TIME AND I JUST RE-READ IT, SO I KNOW IT SHOWS, LOL, (THREE DAYS IF U WERE WONDERING.) ONCE AGAIN, IT'S OVER AND I WON'T BE REVISITING THIS STORY OR ANY OTHERS I HAVE PUBLISHED, SORRY. LIVE LONG, AND PROSPER! XD**


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